Fans woke up this morning to a new single by Grammy and Emmy award-winning pop star Justin Timberlake. Released at 12:01 am ET, “Suit & Tie featuring Jay-Z” is a preview of the pop artist’s upcoming album The 20/20 Experience — his first since FutureSex/LoveSounds in 2006.

The star has kept fans on edge since Thursday, Jan. 10, when he revealed that he was back in the recording studio via Twitter and an elaborate YouTube video. On Saturday, he tweeted a few lines which appeared to be lyrics from his new track, leaving fans in more suspense:

He apologized for being such a tease in an open letter to fans, published today on his website: “No more teasing. Although, it was A LOT of fun. (Did I mention that I’m having fun with this?? Ha!) *Makes a serious face*” He says he has been working on this project since June 2012:

The inspiration for this really came out of the blue and to be honest, I didn’t expect anything out of it. I just went into the studio and started playing around with some sounds and songs. It was probably the best time I’ve had in my career… Just creating with no rules and/or end goal in mind and really enjoying the process.

What I came up with is something I couldn’t be more excited about! It is full of inspiration that I grew up listening to and some newfound muses that I’ve discovered along the way.

While fans are excited to see and hear more of JT in 2013, some critics wonder if the song has been worth the wait. As Billboard.com Assistant Editor Jason Lipshutz explains:

“Suit and Tie” is a good song, but it’s not the artifact from another planet that we’ve been expecting…I’ll probably never forget the moment I heard “SexyBack” in the back room of that dingy Quiznos in July 2006. In six and a half years, will you remember where you were the first time you heard “Suit and Tie”?

The song was written by Timberlake, Timbaland, Shawn Carter, R&B producer Jerome “J-ROC” Harmon and James Flauntleroy, and produced by Timbaland, Timberlake and Harmon. It can be streamed on JT’s website and is available for download on iTunes.